Beyond comprehension.

The last few days have been full of news about the stricken cruise ship, the Costa Concordia. She is lying on her side on a rock not 50 yards from the shore. About 25 people may have died in the accident. Strangely all the attention is focused on the captain, whether he is responsible for veering off course and his conversation with port officials who are heard ordering him to get back on ship and help in the rescue effort. The actual rescue effort seems curiously low key. Divers complain about dark congested spaces with debris floating around. All activity ceases at dark and if the ship is felt to shift towards deeper water. Diesel powered generators are easily available and several could have been hooked up to provide light throughout night. Steel cables could have been attached to the ship from land and an attempt to winch her higher could have been made. It would not be easy and there would be danger of the ship breaking up. Perhaps it is cheaper to pay compensation for 25 dead people than the insurance bill for a ship of that size. Here in India the army chief Gen VK Singh has sued the government in the Supreme Court. His grouse is that the army records show his birth in 1950 while he says that he was born in 1951. If the date is amended his retirement will be postponed by one year which the government is reluctant to accept. The puzzling thing is that he kept completely silent when his seniority was calculated based on 1950 but he wants his retirement to be calculated based on 1951. Why did he not speak out when he was promoted to army chief? He says that it is about " honor and integrity " but it stinks of greed and opportunism. Businessman called Alistair Pereira has been sentenced to a ludicrous 3 years in prison for killing 7 people sleeping on a pavement on November 12, 2006. The Maharashtra government made no attempt to get the courts to increase his sentence. TOI, January 17. He surrendered at Sewri court to begin his prison sentence but was sent home because the Supreme Court order cancelling his bail had not arrived. Sent HOME! After killing 7. Is it any wonder that people all over the world have had enough? Time for the 4 horsemen?